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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29594217">nau'ur (light up, illuminate)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/retrojupiter/pseuds/retrojupiter'>retrojupiter</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Mandalorian (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, BUT this does have some comedy, Fluff, M/M, Trans Cobb Vanth, Trans Din Djarin, Trans Male Character, love is taking your not-quite partner to a forest planet and tenderly holding his hand, obligatory din takes cobb swimming fic, t4t, the t4t is quite heavy handed sorry guys</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 05:27:49</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,958</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29594217</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/retrojupiter/pseuds/retrojupiter</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>He sat next to Cobb, who was swirling patterns with his toes. “You could go in if you want.”</p><p>Cobb looked at him sharply. “Sure, I could. Not sure how it would feel though.”</p><p>“It’s not deep. And it should be warm.”</p><p>Cobb’s face tightened in sudden concentration. It was the same look as when he went to face off against the dragon.</p><p>He stood, walking over to the side of the pool. He leaned over, craning his head to examine the bottom. “And you’re certain no one’s gonna be takin’ a nibble out of me?”</p><p>“Yes. I am sure that the two-inch fish won’t eat you alive.”"<br/>-<br/>Was looking out of my window when it was raining while listening to Hozier and well. What was I supposed to do but write?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Din Djarin/Cobb Vanth</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>86</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>nau'ur (light up, illuminate)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>special thanks to GuenVanHelsing for letting me yell about this ily bro &lt;3</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Din sighed, hitting the recline button on his chair. “I’m not taking you to a swamp planet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And what if I want to see some mud? That’s a novelty.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You can make mud from sand.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb scoffed. “No, you can make wet sand. I’ve only seen</span>
  <em>
    <span> mud </span>
  </em>
  <span>mud on holos”</span>
</p><p>
  <span> One perk of the newer ship he had purchased after the Crest’s unfortunate demise was the fact that he could get some customization into his ship. The new cockpit had a large, angular window on the top, that you could use to stargaze, according to the salesman.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Romance that special someone, all from the safety of your seat.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din wasn’t sure how much romancing was going on, but he was certainly enjoying the reclining pilot’s chairs and staring up at hyperspace with Cobb. The autopilot was on, no one was after him. It was nice to just take a little minute to relax, and he could surreptitiously watch Cobb watch the swirls of hyperspace.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, where </span>
  <em>
    <span>are</span>
  </em>
  <span> you taking me?” Cobb tapped lightly on his shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din was too comfortable to move. Who knew that lumbar support </span>
  <em>
    <span>was </span>
  </em>
  <span>actually important? “Adhu. It’s not a swamp planet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Never heard of it. Touristy spot? You taking me to a beach?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “You’ll see why we’re going, when we get there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He heard Cobb shift again and sneaked a glance over to him. Cobb kept catching him staring. </span>
  <em>
    <span>How </span>
  </em>
  <span>he could tell that Din was staring at him even with the helmet baffled him – but sometimes it was just hard to keep his eyes off him. He was magnetic like that. He was just looking. It wasn’t illegal to look. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Now, Cobb was gazing at the star trails, swirling lights reflected in his eyes. He looked entranced. He looked-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looked like Grogu.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The first couple of times they had done hyperspace jumps, the kid had refused to come out of the cockpit, completely mesmerized by the flashing colours, like he had seen nothing like it before. He probably hadn’t. He had reacted to a lot of things like that. Forests, music, fresh foods, anything that Din bought for him as a present. It made Din sick to think of why a being as old as the child would be so enthralled by something so simple as some </span>
  <em>
    <span>sweets.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>That’s what Cobb looked like now; a child given a mountain of candy. A lazy smile crinkled his eyes as he lay the chair back and settled with his hands on his stomach. Streaks of hyperspace traced through his hair, making the silver shimmer. As much as Cobb liked to bitch about his hair ageing him, Din couldn’t even pretend to agree. It was like beskar; it </span>
  <em>
    <span>shone. </span>
  </em>
  <span>How did he get it to do that? It probably helped that it wasn’t in a helmet all day, but Din’s own grey hairs flecked the sides of his head like ash. That aged him. It didn’t much matter, anyway. It was all tangled with whatever he did.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can feel you staring at me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Shit.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He blurted, “I’m…not staring. I’m looking at the emergency escape panel. It looks, uh, rusted.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Rusted? Really, Djarin-?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb snorted. “Sure, and I’m a bantha. I’m not gonna bite.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din fixed his eyes on the window. Space was safe. Cobb wasn’t going to question stargazing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If Adhu isn’t a swamp planet, then what is it?” Oh, he could feel Cobb looking at him. It was like a gentle burning. Prickling at the back of his neck.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shifted, suddenly feeling quite warm. “It’s a forest planet. Not a dense forest, but it’s in the autumn cycle right now. Thought it would be a good introduction to rain for you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oh, indeed. He could have slapped himself- it was Cobb’s first-time off-world, of </span>
  <em>
    <span>course,</span>
  </em>
  <span> he would want to know what to expect-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>If he looked to turn and meet Cobb’s gaze now, he wasn’t convinced he could break it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s nice. Got a couple of ponds. Some different trees, some frogs.” The kid loved it there. They had a little extra money once, enough to take a day. Adhu was out of the way, enough that he thought they had a little time before any hunters caught up to them. They had never had enough time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb chuckled. “Frogs? The little squishy fellas?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sure. And fish too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They lapsed into silence for a little while. The rumble of the ship would never be the same as the Crest, never quite as familiar, but the low hum slowly lulled Din into a half-sleep. He could still feel the gentle burn of Cobb’s eyes on his helmet. He might as well not have been wearing it at all, for all he could see through him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is beautiful. Never seen anything like it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din risked a glance over. When he met eyes with Cobb, it felt for a second like he was under the full heat of the Tatooine suns. He tried to infuse some of it into his voice. He was never sure if Cobb knew when he was smiling. “You’ve got a few more hours of it before we drop.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He jerked awake to the screech of the drop alarm. Blinking grit from his eyes – he couldn’t just wipe them – Din swung himself up and slapped the alarm, stopping the horrible wailing noise. Why couldn’t it be an unintrusive beep like the Crest?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Behind him, Cobb was grumbling and stretching like a loth cat. “So,” he yawned, arms above his head. “What’s the plan, Captain?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gracefully ignoring Cobb’s slightly obscene groaning, Din reset his chair to sitting. “It should be early evening when we land” There was no way he could phrase this that was </span>
  <em>
    <span>good- “And</span>
  </em>
  <span> we can walk somewhere I want to show you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Leaning over Din’s shoulder, Cobb ogled at the planet, eyes huge and bright. “I didn’t imagine it would be so…green.” His hand was resting on Din’s shoulder, warm even through his flightsuit</span>
  <em>
    <span>.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s a forest planet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Never seen a tree before, partner. No need to get snippy with it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I didn’t mean- “</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m fucking with you. You get grumpy after a nap, old man?” Cobb said, amusement bleeding through his voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din’s head snapped round. “Who are you calling old? I'm younger than you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How would I know? Anyway, I’m </span>
  <em>
    <span>ageing gracefully.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>At least Cobb was decent at repairing conversations.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As Din guided the ship down through the clouds, he mentally patted himself on the back. He had tried to coordinate their taking off from Tatooine with the journey, aiming to get to Adhu an hour or two before the sunset.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t often notice beauty, but when he had been there with Grogu, even he’d been struck by it there. It had been over a year since then. A year, since they had splashed in a stream, no one around. No one to have expectations of him. It made him wonder, did the Jedi play with him? Did he have fun? Was he allowed to be a </span>
  <em>
    <span>child-</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Din? You alright there, partner?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shit. He was clenching the controls far too hard. He let go as if electrocuted, taking a sharp breath. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He cleared his throat. “Yes, fine. You need to buckle in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Diving through the atmosphere, the sky transformed to light, almost pastel violet. At the edge of the clouds, there was a brilliant white patch, like a turning page catching the sun. The rest was dove grey with a subtle hint of purple, just enough to announce the coming sunset. It wasn’t like anything he had seen before on Tatooine, and a glance back at Cobb showed him pulling a concentrated expression badly disguising fascination.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pulled the ship down to the surface, aiming for the same clearing he had landed in with Grogu. Slowly guiding the ship into the clearing, he couldn’t help thinking that how much smoother it was than the Crest. He couldn’t quite decide if he preferred the heart-in-mouth worry he had felt with every creak of the landing gear in the Crest, or the suspense he felt at the near-silent rumble of this ship. It felt a little too much like cheating for it to be this easy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The ship landed with barely a bump. Grogu had giggled at the shuddering the last time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is that sound….is that the rain?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb was staring at him, eyes sparkling. Din gave him a short nod, throat suddenly quite tight. “Yeah, it’s the rain. It’s not too heavy now, so we should be alright if we go out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This isn’t too heavy? What does heavy sound like?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din hummed. “Like distant gunshots.” How could you describe it to someone who had never seen that much water?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>(Sometimes when he had been on bounties, he had sat and listened to the rain and imagined he was back with the tribe, hearing the echo of drums. The Crest had always felt a little too big after it. A little too echoed)</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hit the switch to lower the ramp, missing the vambrace controls for the Crest. He watched as the man slid down the ladder and bounced slightly on his heels as the ramp descended. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb took a lungful of air, a wry grin spreading across his face. He turned to Din. “I can </span>
  <em>
    <span>taste </span>
  </em>
  <span>the water. I feel as though I should be standing here out with a canteen. Or bullying you into turning up that helmet. But there’s no point, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din crossed the ramp, scanning their surroundings. His sensors told him the stream that he and Grogu had played in the last time they had been here wasn’t too far off, just a short walk. Cobb strode out into the middle of the clearing, spreading his arms. He shrugged off his jacket and threw it at Din. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Childlike laughter burbled out of him. “It’s warm. How is it </span>
  <em>
    <span>warm?” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Droplets trailed over Cobb’s arms, glistening. Din closed the ramp and walked up closer; Cobb’s jacket held loosely in one fist. “I thought it would be like ice,” Cobb said, grinning at him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The golden light could have been seeping out of Cobb’s skin,</span>
  <span> the way the glee was exuding from him. His eyes were closed, a wide smile crinkling the corners. He complained about the wrinkles a lot. All Din could think about was how much he admired that he had smile lines at all, that he’d managed to still laugh in a galaxy that seemed determined to beat people down on a planet that eroded everything that tried to stand tall. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hell, he saw even tried to see that in everyone else too. If Cobb had been a bitter man, he would have had to kill him for the armour. Instead, he was…here.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wondered if spending so much time in the Tatooine suns meant that Cobb could simply emanate it now. Whether he didn’t need to be taken to an autumn planet where the forests would dapple his face, whether he just needed someplace to relax. Someone to relax with.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din shook himself. There was no point to that. If Cobb had wanted a partner, he would have had one by now, looking like he did. Mos Pelgo was small, but not non-existent, and Cobb went into the cities often enough.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He patted Cobb’s shoulder. “Hey. We should go, I’ve got someplace to show you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He led the way down from the clearing, having roughly mapped it out with the HUD, and watched as Cobb went over to the treeline. He spread his hands around the trunk. Cobb’s face animated from fascination to disgust, incredulous as he said, “Din! You didn’t tell me the trees were fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>slimy!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Din laughed. “Condensation from the rain. Careful when we go downhill, it’ll be slippy there too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb looked straight over at him. “It smells so different here. Don’t notice things until they’re gone but, sure is odd. Smells a bit like you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb noticed how he smelt. Was it- Did he smell like </span>
  <em>
    <span>moss?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>While Din quietly had a meltdown about that piece of information, Cobb strode back over. “Alright, partner. Lead the way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din shook himself. He only smelt of fabric and metal and polish. Sweat, on occasion.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And dragon bile that one time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He led Cobb to the south of the clearing, wading through the undergrowth. If he was right, and this was the same trail as last time, it should lead-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>To a small stream, that flowed over several boulders through the woods. They were particularly lively forests here, full of bird calls and flowers that had Cobb continually flipping his head between looking up trying to find the birds and trying not to tread on the flowers. Din flicked on his thermal imaging because surely, he would be able to find one for him to look at. He could see the nests with his normal vision, the birds wouldn’t be far away. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cobb.” He held a finger to where his lips would be, shushing him, then pointed up. “You should be able to see one of the songbirds there.” Cobb’s eyes widened. He looked up, but the angle was </span>
  <em>
    <span>just </span>
  </em>
  <span>off-</span>
</p><p>
  <span> Not thinking, Din took his wrist, guiding his hand to where the bird was, leaning close to align their lines of vision. Cobb’s pulse was oddly fast. Was this too much? It would be a lot to take in-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb’s startled gasp took him out of his musings. “There!” There was a small songbird, with red and brown plumage. It was perched on top of its nests, giving them a rather wary stare. “The holos really don’t do justice to the colour, huh.” Cobb shook his head, still grinning.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wouldn’t know,” Din said. “My visor wipes out a lot of the range.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb looked at him sharply. “Like what?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Most of the red range. It got blue tones in it to help see tracks, and that’s what I’m most used to, so I have it on that.” He neglected to mention he had switched to regular tones when they had landed, just to see the golden light through Cobb’s hair. “And even then, it’s a little dull.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t deserve the crease in Cobb’s eyebrows. It was just the way of things. Though, he hadn’t realized just how red Cobb’s clothing was until he started staying with him, realised he had no clothes and had to borrow them. Almost garish, after decades of the same muted flightsuits. Even when he’d had painted armour, the red was rusted, not fresh. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It had always made him a little sad to think that he hadn’t had a chance to appreciate how vibrant his son’s skin was until the very last moment. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t you miss it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” He lied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He let go of Cobb’s wrist, half-stepping back. “It’s this way,” he mumbled, ignoring the curious, hurt twist of Cobb’s mouth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>"You don't <em>ever </em>want to know?" </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why would I? So I can let it hurt me?” His gaze dropped from Cobb’s eyes. “I’ve had a lot of time to realise that things won’t be normal for me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb caught his wrist. “I didn’t mean no offence. Just wondering.” It lingered a second, the press of his thumb corroding</span>
  <span> into Din’s pulse. He let go after a second, giving Din an impassive nod. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din tugged his glove up a little more securely.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The burbling of the stream found them before they saw it, as the undergrowth eventually faded to soft grass. Din had to stop Cobb from putting his hand directly into a patch of nettles. “That will itch like hell if it gets on your skin.”</span>
</p><p>
  
  <span>“So, no different from getting dragon bile on me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sure, except I won’t be helping you get it off,” Din said, smirking.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The stream was as Din remembered it. Gently murmuring, careening over a few rocks, a few shoals of minuscule fish flashing silver in the dying sunlight. Cobb crouched down, running his hand through the water.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Y’know, you might have had the right idea. Not bringing me to an ocean straight away. Even seeing this makes me want to dive in headfirst.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let’s save that for where we’re going, sand brain. Come on.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Following the stream downstream, they both squinted as the sunlight bounced into their eyes. It cast slowly fading light over the both of them, igniting shadows to muted oranges and reds. It felt like it was softening his edges, somehow. As if he were melting into the sunshine like butter.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took them a little while, what should have been a fifteen-minute walk. But Din didn’t want to stop Cobb from craning his neck to look at everything, to even crouching down to look at-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Din,” Cobb called. “I found a frog!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Crouching down next to him, Din laughed. “That’s not a frog, that’s a toad.” A particularly ugly, lumpy toad. “There’s not too much difference though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb looked affronted. “Well, how do you know how to tell the difference?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Grogu wouldn’t eat toads. It confused me for months.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, how did </span>
  <em>
    <span>he </span>
  </em>
  <span>know the difference? Is that what they teach the youngin’s at Jedi nursery?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Smiling, grinning like an idiot really, Din went to stand up, patting Cobb’s shoulder, but as he went, he shifted his foot-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Onto a piece of moss, that he told Cobb earlier was </span>
  <em>
    <span>slippy-</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He crashed straight into the stream with a strangled yelp. Water streamed into his helmet, crunching the audio systems, and disorientating him for a second as his camera took the brunt of the grit and mud. </span>
  <span>His foot hit a rock, </span>
  <em>
    <span>hard, </span>
  </em>
  <span>and he remembered – the stream was about as deep as the kid. He could just-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Stand up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sat up first, feeling the water stream out of his helmet. His vision swam for a second, and he blinked, dazed. Silt covering his helmet gave the world an out of focus, brown tint as the water began to stream into his boots. He turned to Cobb, expecting him to be laughing his ass off. Except, he was reaching a handout, and shaking his shoulder, gripping the unarmoured space between shoulder and neck. He- he looked </span>
  <em>
    <span>worried? </span>
  </em>
  <span>He was saying something, Din should listen, but the speakers were still crackling to shit. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a simple solution, to hear him. Just take it off. He could almost hear Kryze hissing in his ear. But not yet. They weren’t there yet.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shook his head, hearing a clunk, and suddenly the sound came rushing back in. “Din! Partner, you alright? You didn’t hit your head?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb’s hand was so </span>
  <em>
    <span>warm. </span>
  </em>
  <span>It soaked through him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, no. I’m alright. I just- just gotta get out. Of the water.” He stood up slowly, mindful of any unexpected mud patches that could be lurking under the surface. He grabbed Cobb’s arm, stepping out. Then, he gave an almighty shake, attempting to at least get a little water out of his clothes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb yelped. “Hey! Watch it, mister</span>
  <span>!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s nothing.” He wrang out his cape, scowling at the muck. He was going to have to clean that </span>
  <em>
    <span>so </span>
  </em>
  <span>much unless he wanted mould in his circuits. “Could just dunk you in too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb gave him an almighty pull away from the edge. “Now, <em>that</em> won't be necessary.” He huffed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din let himself be dragged. He steadied himself for a second, leaning on Cobb perhaps a second longer than necessary, then he pushed off and kept walking. With slightly more squelch.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb kept trying to subtly put himself between Din and the water this time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A few more minutes, of soggy, wet armour walking, and they were there. The sounds of the stream got a little louder, a little deeper. The hill they had been walking on evened out to another clearing, the stream widening into a small pool. The trees on this planet grew tall, thin and wily,</span>
  <span> stretching into the sky. Here, they seemed to bend around the pool, encasing them in a microcosm of stillness. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din had found it while hunting with Grogu, who had immediately launched himself off Din’s shoulder into the water. The kid had been </span>
  <em>
    <span>determined</span>
  </em>
  <span> to give him a heart attack. Sometimes he really did wonder if the kid was meant to be amphibious, the way he acted- how he hunted frogs like an apex predator. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The water was clean, with pebbles and rocks for the underside instead of the silt of the rest of the stream. The water only went up to Din’s waist, making it perfect for someone who had never swum before, and had a ledge to one side. He pulled Cobb by the wrist, shoving him into the clearing slightly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought, maybe you would want to go swimming. Somewhere more private than a beach.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb looked at him. Din wanted to flinch; his expression was so intense. Something like adoration was fighting its way across his face, and Din was suddenly glad of the helmet to hide his own face’s betrayals.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb shucked off his boots and socks and rolled up his trousers. He tentatively poked a toe into the water, drawing it back out immediately.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s nothing that can eat me in there, right? No germ nasties that’ll get my brain?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thought your head was full of sand?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Seeing his expression, Din relented. “No, you’ll be fine. Maybe some fish.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb walked around to the rock ledge, peering over it. Din resisted the urge to shove him. He sat down, then stretched his legs down into the water. He sighed, leaning back on his hands.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m glad it’s clear, y’know. Not sure how I would feel if I didn’t know where I stood.” He looked over at Din. “You coming in? You’re already soaking.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din sighed dramatically. Every layer of him felt weighed down. He took off his boots too, peeling off his socks. He wrang them out, trying to at least get them a little dry, before stretching them over his boots. He could use the last dregs of sunlight, get them a little less sodden. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sat next to Cobb, who was swirling patterns with his toes. “You could go in if you want.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb looked at him sharply. “Sure, I </span>
  <em>
    <span>could</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Not sure how it would feel though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“it’s not deep. And it should be warm.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb’s face tightened in sudden concentration. It was the same look as when he went to face off against the dragon.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stood, walking over to the side of the pool. He leaned over, craning his head to examine the bottom. “And you’re certain no one’s gonna be takin’ a nibble out of me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes. I am sure that the two-inch fish won’t eat you alive.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb shot him a withering glare.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They only had an hour or so of daylight left, then they would have to think about going. This time of year, it would probably get cold quick, and he was </span>
  <em>
    <span>soaking.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>When he looked at Cobb again, he had to stop himself from jumping. He had already taken off his shirt, revealing tan lines and streaks of white scarring. And he was taking off his trousers-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Of course, he was. It was normal. Din was the one who needed to get a grip</span>
  <em>
    <span>.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb slowly walked into the water, squidging his toes into the bottom. He had an intense look of concentration on his face. Abruptly, he looked up at Din. “It’s so odd- I can’t describe it. This is…like </span>
  <em>
    <span>thick </span>
  </em>
  <span>air.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shook his head, getting up to about knee height. He had a large scar on the back of them. It looked like a burn.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You coming in? You’re already wet.” Cobb chuckled. “never thought I’d see a Mandalorian fall on his ass like that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din glared at him. “We’re not superhuman.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“C’mon! You were like,” he flailed his limbs in an exaggerated re-enactment. Din found himself chuckling. He had to admit, it was probably pretty funny.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Was he going in? The water was no good for his circuits. He’d already pushed it by falling in. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’d been silent for too long. Cobb was speaking again, “You don’t have to take it all off. You don’t have to come in, I’m pushing, don’t- “</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sure.” Well, there was no going back now. He removed his armour slowly, taking care not to damage the wires even more. He removed the armour up to his breastplate and hesitated. The breastplate was his compression. But Cobb wouldn’t judge him, would he? He’d see odder things, surely. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He winced as water dripped out of his chest plate. Beskar couldn’t rust, but he wasn’t keen on finding out what was in the stream. It had been bad enough after the attempted drowning on Trask. He unstrapped it, quickly, hurriedly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shit, Cobb was looking at him funny, head tilted, eyes- soft? He eyed the swell of his chest, and the back of his neck prickled. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re more similar than you realise, partner</span>
  <span>.” Cobb straightened a little more, bringing his chest out of the-</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Oh. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Cobb had faint, pink parallel scars under each of his nipples. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Did Cobb know that he’s smiling? Did he know what that easy acceptance did to him? He didn’t say anything, just tilting his head in what he hoped was a thank you as he stripped the rest of the armour. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The water was warm. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb waded out a little further, up to about his waist, the nervous look fading into a mischievous glint. “It’s safe to go under?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He cocked his head. “Should be. Just remember to come back up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span> “Din, you’re so helpful, so thoughtful,” Cobb said, scowling at him. He took a deep breath, then let it go. “Would you- would you steady me? Just to be sure.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sure.” His voice is softer than he intends. He grabbed Cobb’s shoulder, thumb brushing the back of his neck as he slid under. A few seconds passed before he resurfaced with a whoop. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It's </span>
  <em>
    <span>cold</span>
  </em>
  <span>” He shook his head, hair in tufts, “and those fish are more of a menace than you think. Was staring one right in the eye. Bet you it’ll take a nibble soon.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eyes shining, Cobb grabbed Din’s shoulders. Din tensed. The grip softened, Cobb looking at him earnestly. “Didn’t think I’d have the occasion to see this. Thank you for bringing me along, partner.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re welcome.” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oh, </span>
  </em>
  <span>this man was dangerous.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The temperature dropped quickly as the last of the sun dipped below the horizon, and Din found himself shivering as Cobb clumsily explored the pool. He tapped his shoulder when he resurfaced. “We should get dried off.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They sat on the ledge, feet just tracing the water. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It couldn’t be more different from Tatooine. There, the suns streaked red across the sky, like blood on the sand. It could be beautiful, all the colours overlapping each other, but Din had never really had cause to appreciate it. Night on Tatooine meant freezing temperatures, things and people trying to kill him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Here, it was like some painting you would find in some stuffy Core art exhibit. His visor showed deep blue, almost black, streaked with light near the sunken sun, interwoven with the clouds. Where it met the forest floor, the last traces of autumnal colour glowed, illuminating the leaves. It was so much gentler. Who he would be if he always had this? If he wasn’t always treated harshly. He wasn’t sure who he would become if he spent all of his time looking at soft gentle sunsets and whip-sharp Marshals.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Speaking of, Cobb was looking somewhere off between the pool and the sky. His face was inscrutable, somewhere between mournful and peaceful. He looked over to Din. “Y’know what’s surprising me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Din tilted his head in silent question. He wondered what colour Cobb’s eyes were under the sunset.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s still yellow. I don’t know what I expected, but everything back home is just yellow, for miles to go. This is so different. And still the same.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Every where’s the same. There’s always places like this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb scoffed. “On Tatooine?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well. I’m not saying Tatooine is a wasteland, but- “ </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb smirked. “There’s nothing there except sad old men and womp rats.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“…. Yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cobb shifted, pressing against his side. “Can you see those colours there?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m…not sure.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Would you take it off? For this?” The unspoken </span>
  <em>
    <span>for me </span>
  </em>
  <span>crushed through him, leaving him breathless.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Would </span>
  </em>
  <span>he? Kryze’s inability to respect other’s traditions destroyed any respect he may have had for her opinions on his Creed, but somewhere, all the way underneath the beskar, he would quite like to know what colour the bird’s wings were. What colour Cobb’s eyes truly were. Whether they were as rich as the helmet vision suggested. They looked light brown. He had no way of knowing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not yet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It seemed to mollify him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Before, Grogu and he had left with the light. They were later this time, and a calm stillness was over the pond. No childish giggles, no frantic diving. Just silence. He’d liked silence before. Now he wasn’t sure how time was supposed to pass in it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey.” Cobb’s hand was warm, grasping his where it was clenched on the ledge. “You’re alright. I’m not asking that from you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His hand </span>
  <em>
    <span>ached. </span>
  </em>
  <span>He flexed it, watching the tendons stretched, then flipped it and laced his fingers through Cobb’s. With nothing between them, he could feel the warmth infusing through him. He wasn’t ever sure if he could get over the brand of Grogu’s hand on his bare face. This was almost as fierce. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>As they sat, under the gentle darkness, Din felt like something had loosened in his chest. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>i hope you enjoyed! as always, any and all comments are welcome &lt;3</p></blockquote></div></div>
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